


Reconstruction

by LiquidCaliban



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bucky Barnes & Natasha Romanov Friendship, F/M, I'm Bad At Tagging, Natasha Needs a Hug, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Serious Injuries
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-07
Updated: 2016-12-08
Packaged: 2018-09-07 01:25:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8777578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiquidCaliban/pseuds/LiquidCaliban
Summary: Bucky hangs out with Natasha in Wakanda after she's rescued from Secretary Ross' clutches that I'm certain she fell into after Civil War because no one has let me know otherwise. Then Steve shows up for Romanogering because that's how I roll.





	1. Past

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own anything Marvel owns. And I don’t speak Latin. Because nobody speaks Latin. It’s a dead language. You can read Latin or write Latin…
> 
> Spoilers: MCU through CA: CW.
> 
> Pairing: Romanogers, because I can’t not. And Natasha & Bucky friendship, because they need to share Steve equitably.
> 
> Warning: No descriptions of torture, but resulting injuries are described.
> 
> Summary: Sorry, but it’s making me more and more nuts that the filmmakers just sort of cut Natasha loose in CW, with no hints whatsoever. Fill in the blank fic, I guess. Three parts.

 

Bucky felt weird. Not weird enough to leave the room, but enough to feel uncomfortable. This was really Steve’s place. With Steve away rescuing their, well, _his_ friends – Bucky wasn’t sure he could count anyone other than Steve as an actual friend – Bucky felt it was the least he could do.

Besides, Steve was going to busy being overwhelmed with misdirected guilt the second he got back to Wakanda and found out about this.

Bucky shifted in his chair, wondering if he should try holding Natasha’s hand. She was still unconscious after surgery and the Wakandan doctors had indicated she was going to be out for a while as she healed from her injuries. She’d spent about eighteen of her first twenty-four in the country in the OR after King T’Challa had sent out a team of covert operatives to rescue her. He had apparently told Ross about her role in Steve and Bucky’s escape in Germany and Ross had decided to toss her to a pack of goons in an attempt to interrogate their location out of her – an interrogation that hadn’t stopped even after Zemo had been brought in.

It was probably more about revenge than actually expecting her to break. Bucky couldn’t say he knew Natasha, but she didn’t seem like the type of person you could torture into talking. She especially didn’t seem like the kind of person who would sell out a friend to save herself. Based on Steve unwillingness to talk about her during the flight to Siberia (other a half-muttered lament about how he shouldn’t have left her behind), Bucky suspected there was something more than strictly friendship involved, but he had stopped asking questions after, ‘Why’d you kiss that blonde when you’ve got the redhead?’ hadn’t gone over gangbusters. He didn’t want to be confronted about his own past interactions with Natasha if Steve had a secret thing for her. It was bad enough that she was probably dreaming about his slow, painful death. If Bucky clearly remembered two successful shootings and a nearly successful choking, she sure did. Also, she fought like a damn hellcat.

He decided not to touch her hand, just in case she was faking it.

Of course, she sure as heck didn’t look like she was faking anything. He didn’t quite understand the complexities of advanced Wakandan medicine, but he knew you didn’t wrap a person in that many fancy medical devices unless the situation was serious. Her entire right arm was supported by a weird jelly cast to support the three broken long bones and assorted wrist and hand injuries. For some unexplained reason, her left arm was in fairly good shape other than some nasty bruises and a dislocated shoulder. Hidden under a hospital gown and covers were a bunch of other casts and wraps he’d glimpsed when someone – a doctor or nurse, he had no idea – had been in to check on her.

Bucky propped his elbow on the arm of the chair and rested his chin on his fist. He said out loud, “Steve’s gonna flip his lid when he gets back. Hope the docs have got you looking better by then.” He jerked up in his seat. “Not that I think he’s just into your pretty face, I just mean…uh…you’re not lookin’ so hot. I mean, you’re still hot under all that but…you know what I mean, right?”

To his relief, there was no reaction from her extremely swollen and bruised features. He’d heard a doctor say they’d removed quite a few pieces of teeth from her stomach during the initial life-saving surgery.

“They said you should be getting better pretty quick. Hope that happens before you wake up because otherwise you’re gonna need a truckful of aspirin. Maybe you’re better off staying asleep for now.” He rearranged himself to get more comfortable in his seat. He wasn’t in the habit of talking to people, but he could practice on his unconscious…person. “I, uh, you probably don’t like me very much, but I’m glad you trusted Steve enough to…well, to…to be Steve?

“You probably know him better than me at this point.” He sighed. “I hope the brain docs here find something in those scans they took to get the shit out of my head. You’re probably not interested, but they put me in this tube thing and, like, took live x-rays of my brain working while I thought about different stuff. I don’t really know how it works, but they seem to know what they’re doin’. They supposedly got the best docs in the world here.”

He glanced over his shoulder when someone cleared their throat from the doorway. One of the doctors who had put him in the tube a few days before was standing just inside the room. “Mr. Barnes, we would like to take some additional scans.” It didn’t sound like something they were willing to put off.

“Oh, sure.” He paused before leaving the room, turning. “Uh, I guess I’ll see ya later. Feel better?”

Natasha remained still and quiet.

* * *

She was hazy and not entirely there when he stopped in the next day, but at least she was awake. He could feel her eyes on him as he walked in and waved awkwardly before taking a seat in the chair beside her bed.

“Uh, hey. How’re you feeling?”

She blinked slowly and deliberately three times before slurring, “You have fewer arms than I remember.”

He grinned at the statement, the serious way she’d delivered it while staring at his metal stump in its spiffy arm-sock. “Not a lot of guys can say they lost their left arm twice.” He chose to interpret her muted gurgle as a laugh and continued, “Maybe my next one’ll be gold. Maybe the fifth one is free.”

“Sss…”

He tried to laugh off her difficulty speaking due to her missing teeth. “No need to hiss at me.”

She coughed a few times before managing to get out, “Steve?”

“Oh, right, yeah. Steve.” He tried not to be hurt by the fact that she was more concerned about Steve’s whereabouts, even though _he_ was the one who’d been sitting with her while she’d been out. Why wouldn’t she be? Steve was the one she knew, the one who was supposed to be here while she was unconscious and severely injured. Bucky swallowed hard and said, “He’s fine. He’s on a rescue mission, breakin’ out Sam and Magic and Arrows and Tiny. Ross put ‘em all in some secret ocean prison. He should be back once he gets them to a safe house.” He leaned in closer, lowering his voice. “He didn’t even know you were in trouble or I know he would’ve gotten you before those Wakandan guys did.”

“Women, actually. I sent some of my personal guard both to ensure efficiency and to remove suspicions from Captain Rogers.” Bucky still wasn’t sure about the etiquette to be followed around royalty that also possessed very real ass-kicking abilities, so he stood up quickly and bowed as King T’Challa walked into the room. He waved Bucky off. “There is no need.”

“Er, right.” Bucky remained standing, just in case.

King T’Challa made his own bow to Natasha, covering her hand with his. “Miss Romanoff, I am deeply sorry that my report to Secretary Ross led to your current condition. My physicians are doing everything they can to make your recovery as quick and painless as possible.”

Her gaze slid slowly from the king to Bucky then back. “Thanks?”

“I understand your reservations. I will guarantee your safety while you are my personal guest in Wakanda. I asked Captain Rogers to make your friends the same offer, but they have chosen another path. I want you all to consider yourselves welcome here.”

“I appreciate it,” Bucky mumbled.

“Thank you, Mr. Barnes.” King T’Challa made another bow to Natasha. “I will return to check on your condition.”

Bucky waited until he left to sink back down into his chair with a loud sigh. “I said that Steve would be on board with whatever you, or, uh, whoever decided.”

He thought she had fallen back to sleep after a few quiet moments, but she suddenly mumbled, “I want Steve.”

Unsure of how to interpret the demand, Bucky grasped her hand. “He’s comin’ back to you. He’ll be here soon.”

* * *

Every time Bucky came to see her, Natasha looked a little bit better. It was also getting easier for him to talk to her. She didn’t hold the whole Winter Soldier history against him, which was unexpected and nice. There weren’t very many people he’d shot who’d survived, much less put it behind them. He could understand why his best friend had chosen such an amazing woman as his…friend? Second in command? More?

He walked into her room and pretended to stagger with shock. “Wow, solid food. I’m impressed.”

She looked up from her tray. “Doesn’t take much.”

“You didn’t see you when you came in. I’m surprised you can chew.”

“Wakandan dentistry is just as advanced as Wakandan medicine.” She displayed two even white rows of teeth when she smiled.

“Dentures?”

“Implants. They’re great, but they feel weird against my tongue. They said that should go away once I’m used to them.” She took another colorful bite of vegetables and chewed thoughtfully. After swallowing, she said, “Speaking of amazing implants, I’m surprised you aren’t sporting a new arm yet.”

“Not a priority.” He tapped a finger against his temple.

“You’re saying they can’t do both at once?”

“Well, probably but…look, there’s something I hafta tell you.”

“You’ve finally decided to get a haircut.”

He laughed. “I’m being serious.”

“Yeah, you look really serious, Emo Kid.”

“I’ll just assume that’s an insult. Really, though. I talked to Steve a little while ago. He’s on his way back.”

“When?”

“He’ll be here by tonight. I, uh, I didn’t tell him about you because I figured he’d get worried.”

“Good. He needs to focus on getting back safely.” She fiddled clumsily with her fork, looking less like a professional assassin than a kid who had yet to master her manual dexterity skills; there was nerve damage in her left arm that hadn’t been apparent initially. She didn’t seem bothered by the fact that her last two fingers weren’t moving correctly. “Do you know for sure when he’ll be here?”

“Not exactly, but he said he’s a few hours out.”

“Sorry. Don’t feel like I don’t appreciate you being here.”

“What? No, it’s not that,” he lied. Regardless of her injuries, she hadn’t lost her ability to read people. “He’s your…why wouldn’t you want him here?”

“Look, I…I won’t deny that I wish Steve was here, but maybe it’s not such a bad thing he isn’t. I mean, you and I would never have gotten to be…well, we wouldn’t be talking like this. Steve is…I…I’m glad you and I are okay.”

“Oh. Thanks.” He wondered if he should say something else, but he felt a little stuck. What did you tell a girl you thought your best friend might love when you’d tried to kill her a few times? He decided they were better off moving on than staying in the past. “Uh, that’s not all.”

“That’s not enough?”

“Heh. Yeah. Guess it would be. I’m also here to say goodbye. This is the last time I’ll be seein’ you for a while. Maybe ever.”

“You’re leaving?”

“It’s taking longer than the docs thought to find a solution to my brain thing. I think it’s safer for everyone if I go back on ice ‘til they do. I don’t wanna hurt people.” He moved to scratch his head, but stopped. He didn’t want her to think he was nervous about his decision. “When I found out Steve was gonna be back soon, I asked about going under and they already had it all ready to go. Guess they’re really on top of stuff here.”

“If you think that’s what’s best.” He wondered if the almost regretful expression that flashed across her face was really for him before reflecting on the fact that her expression would have been hidden by swelling and bruising a few short days ago. She suddenly looked up at him, green eyes shining. “Hey, can you do me a favor?”

“Anything. I mean, anything within reason.”

She smiled. “Don’t tell Steve I’m here.”

“What?” He tried not to be disappointed that she was talking about Steve again. “Why not?”

“Because you don’t know how long you’ll be in cryo this time. You both deserve closure, a chance to say goodbye. You shouldn’t have distractions, just manly hugs or whatever old men do to show affection.”

He ignored the barb. It was making him smile, anyway. “He won’t be happy when he finds out.”

“You won’t be awake, so don’t worry about it. I’ll explain it to him if he needs me to. I think he might get a little distracted once he gets the news about why I’m here.”

“At least he’ll be happy you’re here.”

“You know he’ll blame himself, right? You should have seen him when he found out you were alive.” Her smile suddenly disappeared. “Not that it was your fault. I just meant…no matter who tried to convince him otherwise, he was sure it was his fault that you’d fallen and…the Winter Soldier thing hit him pretty hard.”

“He still tracked me down. Made me remember. Trusted me.”

“Like you said, he’s _Steve_.”

Bucky nodded. The pause stretched into silence, prompting him to blurt out, “Do you love him?”

“What?”

“Look, I’m not gonna say anything, I just…I think he…when he looks at you…he used to look at Peggy that way. That’s all.”

She was quiet for so long that he was about to leave. She finally said, “I hope I meet you again, Bucky Barnes.”

“You too.” He leaned down to place a soft kiss on her cheek. “Keep him sane, okay?”

“I’ll do my best.”

When she grasped his hand, he couldn’t feel the two unmoving fingers, just the warm squeeze of her understanding. He left without another word, feeling like he was making the right decision.


	2. Present

Steve gazed out at the misty Wakandan landscape, too embroiled in his own emotions to appreciate the beauty. Bucky was back in stasis. Steve tried to take solace in the fact that it was his own choice this time, made for the right reasons. It still hurt to lose his best friend again. He wondered if the title even applied; he and Sam were close now, and then there was Natasha…

He pushed her out of his head. They hadn’t spoken since she had let him leave her behind in Leipzig. He wished he knew how to get in touch with her. Now that Bucky was safe and everyone else was at nominally free at Fury’s Icelandic safe house, Steve could focus on finding Natasha. Clint had been putting out feelers since boarding the quinjet on the roof of the Raft, but nothing had come up while they’d been in transit.

Of course, Clint probably wasn’t paying as much attention now. Seeing him reunite with his wife and kids at the safe house had been heartrending, to say the least. Steve knew the others had felt a little awkward, but he’d readily picked up Lila when she’d run up to him. She’d immediately asked after her Auntie Nat. He had lied and said he was leaving right away to go get her next. Sam had called his bluff, thankfully in private, though it was out of a desire to help rather than mistrust. If Steve had had any idea where to find Natasha, he would have been there as soon as he could, but the fact remained that there was nothing.

He brooded at T’Challa’s side as they stared out at the waterfalls, thinking about his frozen friend and his missing friend. Bucky would be safe here in Wakanda, but what about Natasha? Was she safe? His gut told him that she was, but it wasn’t enough. He sighed heavily.

T’Challa interrupted his thoughts. “There is something else, Captain.”

“There always is.”

“Agent Romanoff…”

“You know something about Natasha?”

He looked at Steve critically before continuing, “As I was saying, Agent Romanoff was taken into custody by Secretary Ross after the incident at the airport. Unfortunately, my report was instrumental in his decision.”

Steve felt a tightening in his chest not unlike the asthma attacks he had suffered so many times before the serum. “You…she…”

“Secretary Ross had her interrogated by some ruthless individuals. When I discovered the situation, I sent my personal guard to free her. She was injured, but she is healing. Would you like to see her?”

The pressure suddenly released, allowing him to breathe. “She’s here?”

“I will take you to her.”

The Wakandan hospital turned foggy as he followed T’Challa. His pulse was beating against his ears. He didn’t even turn as they passed the lab where Bucky was currently residing. Natasha was here. _Natasha was here_. Steve was going to see her and he didn’t even have to mount a rescue mission. They entered a sterile, white hallway and he suddenly remembered he was in a hospital. He caught T’Challa’s arm, not considering whether it was an insult to grab the king until a woman shot him a disgusted look. Steve dropped his hand. “Sorry, but did you say she’s hurt?”

“She has made great progress since her arrival.” He gestured to room on his left. “Please.”

Whatever Steve had been expecting, it wasn’t the bright smile Natasha gave him when she looked up and recognized him. “Hey, soldier.”

He felt like he was walking through waist-deep mud as he crossed the room. It couldn’t have taken more than a few seconds, but he felt hours passing as he took in Natasha’s appearance – the yellowing bruises, bandages, casts… He restrained his first impulse to pull her into his arms. “You look different,” he choked out.

The quirk of her eyebrow was hampered by swelling around a fading black eye. “It’s the teeth.”

“Um…okay.” He sank into the chair at her bedside.

“Had to get new ones. They’re implants.” She reached for the hand he had allowed to settle on the railing of her bed, hooking two fingers around his. “How are you? Everyone is safe?”

“Yeah. Fury handled it. Laura and the kids met us there. Lila wanted to…” His insides were so twisted with shame he wanted to throw up. “Natasha, I…”

“Please don’t make this harder. It’s not your fault, so stop thinking that.”

“How can I not?”

“Because it was my decision. If I hadn’t been so sloppy, Ross never would have found me, but it happened and here we are. I’m getting better.”

“Doesn’t mean I have to be happy it happened.”

“No, but you’re not allowed to blame yourself.”

He let himself smile as he interlaced his fingers with hers. “How do you plan to stop me?”

“You say that like I can’t wrap you around my little finger with the right look.”

“Speaking of fingers…” He looked down at their hands, where her ring and pinky fingers were oddly curled and unmoving. “How bad is it, really?”

“Better than it was. T’Challa’s people have been really good.” She shook her head slowly. “Those assholes Ross gave me to weren’t very good at their jobs. Nothing systematic about the process. Oh, and they didn’t break my left arm because they wanted to film me signing a confession. How stupid is that? They beat the shit out of me, then think it’ll only look real if they record me signing something?”

“I never should have left you behind.”

She pulled her hand from his grasp, prompting him to look up. “You didn’t leave me; I stayed. Don’t pretend like you could have forced me to go with you.”

“Nat…” He realized exactly what she’d meant about wrapping him around her finger with a single look and dropped his protest. “I assume you didn’t talk, anyway.”

“Oh, they couldn’t get me to shut up, not that they found out anything. It turns out I can recite _The Tempest_ from memory. Not just one part, but the whole play! It really started to piss them off by Act III.” She tucked a loose lock of hair behind her ear, not seeming to notice that her two fingers got tangled until she tried to pull away. “Ugh. Annoying. Nerve damage. They think it will heal in a couple of months, though. Hey, what were you saying about Lila earlier?”

“Huh? Oh, she was asking for you when I dropped Clint off. I told her I was off to get you next, so at least I’m not a liar now. Cooper asked me to say hi, too.” He hadn’t realized that he was holding her hand again. “You should probably try to get in touch with Clint, by the way. He’s pretty worried.”

“You broke him out of prison to take him to his family and he was worried about me?”

Steve shrugged. “He knew they were safe.”

“I’ll ask for some kind of secure communications hookup.” They were quiet for a few moments. He was about to apologize again when she asked, “How’d it go with Bucky? Is he back in stasis?”

“Yeah, he’s…wait, how did you know about that?’

“He told me.”

“He knew you were here? He didn’t say a word to me!”

“Because I asked him not to. You and I have plenty of time, but there’s no way to know how long it’ll be before you two can talk again. Besides, it’s not like you could have done anything other than divide your attention. Suck it up, soldier.”

Steve sighed heavily. She was right, but that didn’t mean he had to be happy about it. “I still…I’ve been thinking about you a lot.”

“I missed you too. God, I really fucked up that decision on the Accords.”

He felt his cheeks color. “You couldn’t have known that at the time.”

“I still should have. You had it figured out.”

“Hmm.” He didn’t really want to think about the situation any more than he already had. It was bad all around. Sam had filled him in on what had happened to Rhodey, Tony was an emotional disaster, Wanda was…she was in such a rough place that Fury had mentioned bringing in a therapist. Steve blinked to clear the vision of her haunted eyes from his head. Unfortunately, the next thought that popped up came out of his mouth before he could censor it, “Sharon Carter and I kissed.”

“Finally.” Natasha was disturbingly nonchalant about the disclosure. “How’d it go?”

“Fine, I guess.”

“That’s an interesting way to describe it. Had one of you just eaten onions or something?”

He grunted noncommittally, not meeting her eyes. He wanted her to – not be jealous, exactly, but – yes, jealous. He tensed as he realized what that meant. He was gripping her hand so hard she pulled out of his grasp.

“Sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

“No, it’s fine.”

“Steve, it was cruel. You can’t see her because of what’s happening and you don’t need me twisting the knife. I’m sorry.”

She was still pushing him toward Sharon. All this time and she still couldn’t see. Or he couldn’t show her. “Nat…”

“Hey, look at me.”

He didn’t, but he did take her hand again as he whispered, “Kissing you was better.”

“You’ve never kissed me.”

“Yes we did!” His indignation was quelled when he looked up and saw her smiling, light twinkling in her eyes. He still went on, “We kissed. On the escalator…it was in DC.”

“Yeah, I remember clearly. I kissed you. You stood there trying not to piss yourself.”

“I didn’t!”

“I know. You have excellent bladder control.”

“No, I mean…I can do better. You caught me off-guard that time, that’s all.”

“Are you asking for a redo?”

“Yeah.” He felt the color rising again in his cheeks. “If you want, I mean.”

“You don’t have to do that, Steve.”

His burst of confidence dipped. “You don’t want to.”

“I don’t want you to do something you’re going to regret just because I’m in a hospital bed and you feel guilty,” she said gently. “If you’re going to make it work with Sharon…”

“What about us?” he interrupted. “I’d rather…Sharon’s great but you…Nat…can we…I…”

“Shh. We can’t do this right now.”

“What about…?”

“Later. Once I’m better.”

“Okay.” He didn’t wait before leaning forward to press a chaste kiss to her lips.

When he pulled back after a moment, she was smiling at him again. “Well, if you’re gonna tempt me like that…”

He wasn’t sure how much time had passed when they were interrupted by the medical staff; he just knew that he was definitely enjoying the practice.


	3. Future

Bucky blinked a few times to try to warm up his eyes. He didn’t have many memories of waking up from cryo when he had been Hydra’s pet assassin, but he felt like he would have remembered his tears freezing. His vision began to clear as the chamber warmed further. The glass cover was still frosted over, however, allowing him to make out only dark blurs in the bright light of the room beyond.

He was about to start knocking on the glass when there was a hiss and the lid dropped. The air he inhaled was almost hot in his chilled lungs and caused him to cough. A tall man in white clothing caught him as he fell forward. “Breathe slowly and deeply.”

“Bucky, you okay?”

Reality began to assert itself as he looked up and saw Steve. He’d gone into stasis in Wakanda while they figured out a way to remove the Winter Soldier programming from his brain. His teeth chattered as he asked, “How long?”

“About four years.” Steve grabbed his shoulders to steady him as he staggered away from the doctor. “They woke you up because they think they’ve found a way to cure you.”

“Can I have a cuppa coffee first?”

Steve grinned back. “There’s a hot meal waiting once you get dressed.”

“Nah, just somethin’ to drink before they zap me or whatever.”

“It is a complex targeted surgery to realign altered neurons,” the doctor stated curtly. “We will begin the procedure tomorrow once your body has had time to normalize.”

“Oh. Right. Thanks.” Bucky reached for the hooded sweatshirt Steve was passing him as the doctor strode out of the room. He grabbed Steve’s wrist rather than the hoodie. “Is that what I think it is?”

Steve’s grin turned into a beaming smile as Bucky stared at his hand. “Yeah.”

“How long on this?”

“Almost two years. Wish you coulda been there, but you can watch the recording.” He pulled his arm back and twisted his wedding ring around his finger. “We’ll get you caught back up.”

Bucky realized he had no idea who Steve had actually married. Rather than asking whether it was Natasha or the blonde or someone completely different and feeling like an idiot, he asked, “And when do I get to offer my congratulations to the bride?”

“At lunch. She wanted to give us a minute to say hi.”

That sounded like Natasha, but he didn’t know enough about the blonde to decide it wasn’t like her. As he slipped on the hoodie, on which the left sleeve had thoughtfully been pinned up, and a pair of sandals, he started to hope it was the blonde. If Steve had married _her_ , that meant that Natasha was possibly available and… His stomach did a little flip of excitement before it rumbled, reminding him that he had more pressing matters at the moment. “Well, let’s eat. I feel like I haven’t had a good meal in years!”

They made small talk as they walked through increasingly luxurious hallways and into a large banquet room. The table was set with only a few places and King T’Challa was standing there talking with… Hot damn! It was the blonde! She looked way better from behind than Bucky remembered, but it had been a few years. He was about to ask Steve if Natasha was going to be around when the blonde turned and saw him.

“Bucky!” It took a second for him to reconcile the fact that he was actually looking at a blonde Natasha. She walked right up to him and rose to her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “How are you feeling?”

“Okay. What’s with the hair?”

“I’m doing great, thanks.” She rolled her eyes and tossed a few long, wavy locks over her shoulder. “I was working undercover and haven’t had a chance to go back to normal yet. Steve hates it too.”

“I don’t _hate_ it,” Steve protested, cutting off Bucky’s sarcastic retort before he could deliver it.

“Please.” She smacked Steve’s arm lightly as he leaned in to press a kiss to her temple. “You almost threw me out of bed this morning.”

“Only because I’m not used to it and I didn’t remember it was you!”

T’Challa chuckled as he approached to shake Bucky’s hand. “I am glad you are back with us, Mr. Barnes. I hope we have found the solution to your difficulty.”

“Me too. Thanks for doing this, by the way.” He glanced toward a door where several men in uniforms and aprons had appeared with trays. “I mean, thank you, your majesty.”

“Please, that is not necessary. Shall we sit?”

T’Challa took his place at the head of the table as the meal was set down. Bucky tried not to plop into his chair across from the seat Steve was gallantly pulling out for Natasha. She was wearing her own wedding ring along with a diamond on her left hand. Well, that idea had been a longshot anyway. Plenty of pretty girls out there. Not like her, but he would have a lot more chances with a lot of others if this treatment worked.

It was hard not to be completely happy for Steve and Natasha the longer he watched them, though. His hand was resting over hers on the table and they kept looking at each other with little smiles. Bucky decided he would have to be an asshole to be jealous of his best friend. He set his coffee cup down after drinking almost half of it in a single gulp. “So, you guys have been married for two years, Steve said?”

“Mm hmm.” Natasha glanced at Steve. “He finally convinced me to make an honest man out of him.”

“I do like consistency.”

“It was a lovely ceremony,” T’Challa said. “A pleasant interlude between missions.”

“What kind of missions?” Bucky asked looking at each of them in turn. “You said you were undercover, right? You workin’ officially or is this somethin’ else?”

Natasha shrugged. “We’re back in the world’s good books after we saved the universe.”

“The universe, huh?” Bucky laughed. “The whole thing?”

“Pretty much.”

Steve squeezed her hand and continued, “A big ugly purple guy named Thanos showed up a couple of years ago. He had this weapon called the Infinity Gauntlet that made him practically invincible. It was bad. Before it was over there were a lot of casualties, military and civilian.” His voice became more and more strained. “We lost Scott and Vision. Vision was fighting against us when you met him, but…we had to come together to… Sorry.”

“Captain, we were only able defeat Thanos because of you and Agent Romanoff,” T’Challa said soothingly. He turned to Bucky. “As it turns out, love is a more powerful weapon than any Thanos could have used.”

Both Steve and Natasha blushed. Bucky scoffed. “Love? Love’s a weapon now?”

“Great, now we have to get him to read Harry Potter,” Natasha muttered.

“You cannot deny history,” T’Challa chided. “We do not fully understand what occurred, but we know that Captain Rogers and Agent Romanoff created a seventh Infinity Stone in the moment they sacrificed themselves for each other.”

“Or we happened to make it to the inter-dimensional space where someone hid the secret gem when we both nearly died. I love Steve, but lots of people love each other – couples, parents and children, siblings. Clint loves his wife and kids and he almost got killed with the rest of us. It’s not like we’re unique.”

“That is not what Stephen Strange said.”

“He has the most appropriate name I’ve ever heard.”

Bucky got the feeling Natasha and T’Challa were rehashing an old argument, so he turned to Steve. “I missed some ups and downs then?”

“That’s one way to put it. You getting better definitely counts as an up.” He pulled Natasha’s hand to his lips, ending her conversation with T’Challa. “Along with a few other things.”

“I told you I’m not dyeing my hair until my roots grow in so I can match the color right.”

“I was trying to compliment you on being the very best thing in my life.”

“Oh. Well, you’ve always been smart.” She smirked and leaned toward him for a kiss.

Bucky shook his head. “They always like this?”

“Yes,” T’Challa answered. “The media thinks they are, and I quote, adorable.”

“Yeah, I bet they’re in all the newsreels. Or Facebooks. Whatever.”  He aimed a kick at Steve under the table and missed. “Hey, lovebirds! Some of us are tryin’ to eat.”

Steve’s cheeks colored, but Natasha was unaffected. “Maybe we can put off your procedure until the doctors find out what makes you a jerk so they can change that, too.”

“That’s just my charming personality, sweetheart.”

“You’re lucky you’re having brain surgery tomorrow. And that we’re friends.”

“Yeah…uh….” Bucky was unable to come up with a response because he was unexpectedly touched by her admission. “Well, I’m happy for you and Steve. You know he’s a punk, right?”

“Of course.”

Bucky spent the rest of the day enjoying the company of his friends. Whatever happened tomorrow, he felt good about it.

The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to all for reading! I know it's not long, but it wasn't meant to be. Hope to post a new story soon!


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